CONVERTING HOUSEHOLD UNITS AND METRIC
You’ll find yourself having to convert between household and metric units when
you calculate a patient’s input and output volume and when you provide home
healthcare to a patient. There, you’ll use a teaspoon, tablespoon, or cups mea-
sured in ounces to administer medication.
When converting from milliliters or cubic centimeters to ounces, divide by 30,
as shown here: [Remember 30 cc (30 mL) = 1 oz.]
240 mL÷ 30 = 8 oz
60 cc ÷ 30 = 2 ozWhen converting from ounces to milliliters or cubic centimeters, multiple by
30, as shown here:
2 oz × 30 = 60 mL
4 oz × 30 = 120 mLWhen converting from pounds to kilograms, divide by 2.2, as shown here:
Remember 2.2 lbs = 1 kilogram
22 lbs ÷ 2.2 = 10 kilogramsWhen converting from kilograms to pounds, multiple by 2.2, as shown here:63 kg × 2.2 = 138.6 poundsFormulas for Calculating the Desired Dose
In the ideal world, the prescriber will write a medication prescription that has a
dose that is available in the hospital. For example, the medication prescription
is for a 15-mg tablet of Inderal and the hospital has on hand a 15-mg tablet
of Inderal.
In the real world, the dose specified in the medical prescription may not be
available. The hospital might have 10-mg tablets of Inderal and not the 15-mg
tablets prescribed. Instead of asking the prescriber to change the medication
order, the nurse calculates the proper medication to give the patient based on the
medication order and the dose that is on hand.
In this example, the nurse calculates that the patient should receive 1.5 tablets
of Inderal. This means that the nurse must divide one tablet into halves.
CHAPTER 7 Dose Calculations^117